Tim Sherwood insists Spurs will not be passing up the chance of Europa League football - even though the club are sick of it.

Tottenham are on course for their fourth successive campaign in the competition if, as expected, they fail yet again to finish in the top four.

Liverpool, however, are challenging for the title having had the benefit of missing out on the tournament this year.

And on the last occasion that Spurs did reach the Champions League, in 2010, they did not have the marathon schedule of the Europa League year before.

The Spurs boss said: "It's the extra games. People say that if you have less games you have more chance of emulating Liverpool this year.

"The last time we qualified for the Champions League, the year before we were not in the Europa League.

"The stats don’t lie, it certainly is a benefit [not to qualify].

"But I’m sure that everyone at this club wants to finish as high up as possible and we are certainly not going to go onto the field now with four games to go and try and lose a game so that we don’t qualify, that just is not going to happen."

The Europa League has not even proven to be a lucrative competition for the north Londoners. Last year's accounts show they made just £5million for their travails under Andre Villas-Boas.

Sherwood added: "I'm not against it, it's just the stats that are there say everything.

"The extra games this season have meant we've ended up playing 12 more games than Liverpool. They are challenging for the title because they didn't have the Europa League.

"It is certainly helps when you have a whole week to prepare for games."

Sherwood has also dismissed suggestions that he has been ordered to play Erik Lamela before the end of the season by Spurs club chiefs.

Lamela has been out with a back injury since New Year's Day. In total he has made just five league starts since his £30million move from Roma last summer.

Sherwood expects him to be fit for the World Cup but maintains he will not play in any of the final four games of the season.

“There’ll be no chance Erik’s fit,” he said. “I read in the paper, or someone told me, that the hierarchy here are asking for him to get more opportunities.

"Chance would be a fine thing, he’s injured. He’s never been fit. I think he was fit for about three weeks while I was in charge, and then he’s been out injured.”